


Moving Pictures

by Writerleft



Series: Comes Marching Home [6]
Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Before book 3, F/F, Korrasami Month 2016, post book 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-22
Updated: 2016-11-22
Packaged: 2018-09-01 11:22:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,301
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8622691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Writerleft/pseuds/Writerleft
Summary: While taking charge of Varrick's holdings after the Unavaatu attack, Asami discovers there is film footage of the fight itself. It still stung how little she could help at the time, and now curiosity gets the best of her.





	

“Wait,” Asami said, freezing in place in her walking tour of Varrick's mover studio. His arrest and escape had left his business assets in limbo, and the vagaries of their contract had left Asami the top stockholder—and thus, ranking official—in both of their companies.

It was a wonderful reversal from where she'd been a month ago, but it left her with en entirely new company to get acquainted with. One that had been organized—if she were generous enough to use the word—by a crazy person. Everything was entangled and it seemed like nobody but Varrick—well, Zhu Li actually—actually knew how the company worked.

But all of that wasn't enough to distract her from what the director had just said. “You're saying you have footage of the Unavaatu fight?”

“Of course!” the director said. “We couldn't let an opportunity like that go by! We even had one by the harbor, getting newsreel footage after the, um, incident at the Pro Bending stadium.”

Asami waved the explanation away. “Can you show me?”

“Uh... sure thing, Miss Sato! Let's head to the screening room...”

Within a few minutes, she was sitting in a small, darkened amphitheater, situated between Varrick's biotech lab and the facility's laundry. The way this man laid his company out... she shook her head and put Varrick out of mind.

The fight with Unalaq was only a few weeks ago. Korra was still in the South, helping mop up after the civil war. Asami had been in the North, had helped Korra and the others get to Unalaq... but in the end she'd wound up on the sideline, keeping Korra's dad safe. Not that there would've been much she could've done against Unalaq and his spirits, not the way Korra and the boys had described it... but it still galled her. Was she part of Team Avatar, or not?

The film started. She squinted at the light at first, as the projectionist adjusted the focus. The footage seemed to have been taken from the top of Harmony Tower—quick thinking on the camera crew's part, though probably not the safest place to be. Of course, if Korra hadn't shown up, it wouldn't have mattered—

The camera panned slowly, taking in the shimmering patterns in the sky. Probably what the crew had gone out to see to begin with. Then a streak in the side of the frame, the camera jerking to see it. Something impacted in the bay, a huge plume of water, and then, a figure arose.

Her gaze hardened. Massive and dark, tendrils writhing from his shoulders, sigils growing across his chest and head—Unavaatu.

She sat forward, shaking her head. Why had he come to Republic City? Why not the South, still in rebellion? As far as Asami knew, Unalaq had no reason to start 10,000 years of darkness anywhere in particular. She watched, cold-eyed, as he shoved the navy aside. Why start by here?

Unavaatu waded across the bay, tendrils whipping forward to ensnare the statue of Aang. In a smooth, snarling motion, he pulled the statue of the previous Avatar from its pedestal and cast it into the sea.

Well, that explained that. Even knowing how this was going to play out, Asami found herself feeling sick. This would have been moments after Unalaq had beaten the connection to Korra's past lives out of her, having torn Raava from her body, having left her weak and sobbing and vulnerable...

Asami hadn't been there. The strength it must have taken, for Korra to pull herself back from that. To stand tall enough to continue fighting. She took a deep breath. Korra hadn't wanted to talk about it, Tenzin hadn't given much information.

Unalaq's rampage continued, swatting planes from the sky, then casting a beam at an airship bright enough to make her squint.

She crossed her arms as the monster waved its own, making vines erupt all over the city. The camera shook, scanning down at the vines that had just enveloped the tower. Asami had seen the damage up close, but watching it _happen_...

Then, the screen grew bright. Unavaatu looked up as the light washed out the image, and...

The camera shook again as the impact reached it. The light diminished, and where Unavaatu had been, there rose a figure of light. Familiar curves, ragged hair, a look of resolve.

Korra.

Asami let out a breath she wasn't aware she'd been holding. She'd known her friend was powerful, she'd seen her in action, but not like... never like this. Unavaatu rose from the waves, and soon the both of them let loose energy beams straight from their chests—not bending, just pure energy. Korra didn't even have Raava within her, all of that power was coming strictly from _her_.

She let out a ragged laugh, her head shaking slightly. This wasn't the Avatar saving the world, this was _Korra_ doing it. Her friend, who she laughed with, who slurped noodles and made dorky jokes.

Her friend Korra, who was unleashing the power of her own soul against the spirit of elemental chaos and darkness—and sent the evil spirit flying.

Asami's hands gripped the edge of her seat. Unavaatu recovered, whipping its tendrils at Korra.

She whirled out of the way, grabbing a handful of them and yanking herself _closer_ to the Dark Avatar, so she could knee it in the face.

The CEO cheered, then sat back, looking at her assistant and the others in the room sheepishly. She did her best to watch the rest of the fight in silence, though she did squirm as Unavaatu rallied, and she bit her lip worriedly as he attempted to cleanse Korra's spirit. What would that even do? They'd all been so close to destruction, it was difficult to think about, but somehow seeing Korra on the screen, moments away from annihilation...

Another light from the sky had come—Jinora. The tide turned in Korra's favor, then, as she found Raava buried deep within Unavaatu, rescued the light spirit, and then cleansed what had become of her uncle, moving with grace belying her titanic stature. As Unavaatu dissolved into motes, Korra closed her eyes, bowing in respect. Even after all that, even after the world was nearly ended, Korra was still big enough—figuratively—to treat the moment with reverence.

She swallowed. The room waiting in silence as the reel ended, and the lights faded back on.

“Your friend is quite impressive,” her assistant hazarded.

Asami nodded, still staring at the now-blank screen.

Korra was a force of nature.

She'd saved the world.

Indeed, the other people in the room were all muttering to each other, about her power, about the way the fight went, about what was left in its aftermath.

None of them knew.

None of them knew her.

None of them had driven her around in their car, shared a late night snack, cried on her shoulder.

All the world saw Korra, but who saw her, really? How lonely she must be. Asami had seen glimpses, quickly covered.

Asami let herself be led, resuming the tour, but her mind was elsewhere. Korra would be back in town before long, to deal with the spirit vines left over from the attack. Everybody would be making demands, everybody would have questions and complaints.

She resolved to be there. She'd make time. Even when the worst of Mako's poor relationship skills had come between them—once Asami had gotten past Korra's initial hesitance, at least—they'd gotten along great. Korra was going to need a friend. A confidante, even. The savior of the world needed somebody she could be just a person with.

And Asami had just decided who that somebody was going to be.

 

 

_fanart courtesy of[jaykv](https://jaykv.tumblr.com/post/174621196579/fan-art-based-on-threehoursfromtroy-s-moving)_

**Author's Note:**

> [Visit me on my tumblr! Say hi! ](https://threehoursfromtroy.tumblr.com/)


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